Device for adjusting the thickness of glass plates and sheets



Aug. 18, 1931. Y. BRANCART DEVICE FOR ADJUSTING THE THICKNESS OF GLASS PLATES AND SHEETS Filed Feb. 14, 1930 A f fo rkey Patented Aug. 18, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE YVON BRANCART, OF VERRERIES IDE FAUQUEZ, RONQUIEBES, BELGIUM DEVICE FOR ADJUSTING THE THICKNESS F. GLASS PLATES AND SHEETS Application filed February 14, 1830, Serial No. 428,398, amfin Belgium February 14, 1929.

The thickness of lass plates and other glass sheets producet? by casting glass ina molten condition onto a table is usually determined by a roller which is placed above said table and at a distance therefrom corresponding to the thickness the glass plate is desired to be given. This roller is supported by the longitudinal edges of the casting table and, according as the latter is stationary or movable, the roller is moved relatively to the table or the table relatively to the roller, in order that the latter spreads the glass to the same thickness all over the castin surface.

Hit erto, to vary the distance between the roller and table, small ledges of various thicknesses were arranged on the edges of the table, on.which the roller journals were rolling, or the diameter of these' journals 29 was varied by fitting them with more or;

less thick-rings. These adjusting means, be-

sides being unpractical owing to the.stoppage of work necessary for changing the ledges or rings, do not permit of great accuracy, because the rolling surfaces wear unevenly when the speed of rotation of the roller does not correspond toits velocity of translation on the table or to the velocity of translation of the latter, as is frequently 30 the case. 1

According to the present invention, these inconveniences are. removed by having the roller journals supported in bearings which are mounted on carriages on each side of the table and vertically adjustable. In this way; the height of the roller above the table can easily be varied, and no abnormal wear, prejudicial to accurate adjustment, can take place, the carriages running freely on the table, whatever-be the difference between the speed of rotation of the roller and the velocity of translation ofthe roller or table.

The invention can be carried out in different ways. Various forms of construction are shown by way of example in the Figs. 1 to 5 of the'a'ccompanyi'ng drawings. In all these figures, (1. indicates the calibrating roller, b the surface of the. casting table, 0 the journal of the roller (1, and d the vertically adjustable bearing supporting the latter.

In Fig. 1, the bearing 0? is shown'mounted at the intersection of, two scissor-like shanks e provided at their lower ends with rolls 7 -and-at their upper ends with tie-rods g',

which arethreaded in opposite directions and fit into, a double-threaded nut h. By tightening or slackening this nut, the shanks e may be more or less opened orclosed to move the bearing 61, and consequently the roller a, nearer to or further away from the table 1;.

Instead of connecting together the u per endsofthe shanks e, the tie-rods 9 an nut k may be placed between the upper end of one shank and the corresponding lower end of the other shank, as shown in Fig. 2.

.In the constructional form illustrated in Fig. 3, the bearing d is mounted in a car-. riage z', the height of this carria e relatively to the table I) being adjustable y means of nuts j screwed on to two' vertical threaded rods k resting on the table by means of rolls Z. These threaded rods pass freely through thebody of the carriage i, which is slotted on both sides of-the bearingso as to form shoulders'm by which it rests on the nuts j.

The device shown in Fi 4 'diifers from the preceding one in that t e carriage i has only a single threaded rod k on one side of the bearing and is provided on the other side with a non-adjustable roll n, on which it ivots when its height is adjusted by screwing the nut up or down on the rod k. In

'both cases the adjusting nuts j may be provided with lock nuts as shown on the drawlngs.

A last constructional form of the invention is shown in Fig. 5. In this form, the

- carriage 6 supports the bearing d by means ment of the bearing may be provided with suitable marks permitting to easily ascertain if the two bearings sup orting the roller are well at the same heig t.

It is well understood that the invention is 5 not limited to the only constructional forms above described by way of example, and these might be modified or other forms devised to embody the same principle without departing from its scope. I claim:

1. In-combination with a casting table, 'a calibrating roller, a pair of carriages on said table each comprising a pair of supporting shanks pivoted to one another, a bearin for said roller on each of said carriages, said bearing bein concentric with the ivotal axis of said shanks, and means for ad usting the relative angular positions of said shanks.

2; In combination with a casting table, a

calibrating roller, a pair of journals for said roller, a pair of carriages on said table each comprising a pair of supporting shanks pivoted on one of said journals, and an adjustable screw-threaded connection between (the shanks of each carriage.

3. In combination with a casting table, a calibrating roller, a pair of bearings for said roller, a pair of carriage bodies each carrying one of said bearings, wheels supporting 1 said carriage bodies, said Wheels resting on .said table, screws interposed between said 7 wheels and said carriage bodies, said screws engaging said bodies, and means for locking said carriage bodies in adjusted position with respect to said screws.

YVON BRANCART. 

